Bizarre Beliefs and Magical Thinking for All!

The things that I believed while I was in the Mormon Church were not always just the standard fare. I did not just believe that Joseph Smith was a prophet who had a vision, that the Book of Mormon was true, and that the LDS Church was the one true church one earth. I believed other crazy things.

A few years ago, I was on my aunt's rural property and thought that I had found a temple. I thought that I was feeling the power of God whenever I went to a certain spot. I believed that there were spots throughout the earth that were natural temples. This was from the idea that a spot in Jerusalem was consecrated by a Mormon leader. However, I didn't think it was consecrated by the Mormon leader. I thought it was consecrated by the Book of Mormon prophet Moroni.

On the same vacation/family reunion at my aunt's house, I decided that I was going to convert all of my non-Mormon relatives. These relatives had long been a concern to me. They did things like drinking beer, gambling, and swearing. Some of my cousins are the wildest people I know. However, by the end of this family reunion I was sure they couldn't possibly be open to it. And they had started many fights that proved that all they wanted in life was attention and mischief. They told lies and made empty accusations. And I began to retreat from them on an emotional level. These people want to be Mormons? Oh, please.

Another time, I was in church when a stake president was speaking in sacrament meeting. He said that the windows of heaven were closing and we didn't have much more opportunity to pay our debts. He said that in a few years we would not be able to pay them off anymore. I believed this wholeheartedly. As LDS people, we were always told to prepare for disasters and that the Second Coming of Christ was around the corner. The LDS leaders made a big deal out of everyone paying their debts. So, this made sense to me. Soon thereafter I got a "prophecy" telling me that the economy of the United States would collapse in 15 years. I used the bad reports of the U.S. economy on NPR to work myself up on this one. I called people and told them the prophecy. I was sure it was true. Nothing really unusual happened to make me believe that my idea had come from God. However, I thought I had the gift of prophecy. My sister pooh-poohed me when I told her. I thought she was blind and insensitive when it came to the truth.

Later, I decided that the United States economy was probably still pretty good since it kept having any growth at all. I have since decided that economic woes are here, but they pop up in cycles and for actual reasons. Sometimes the economy just prunes itself here and there. I now believe that it would take many years for the whole U.S. economy to get that weak.

On a financial level, the LDS Church is not the place to be. It may be that the LDS Church is very wealthy. I don't have exact figures, but it is worth over a billion at this point. One of the reasons for this wealth is that everyone pays ten percent of their gross earnings every year. People are told that they must pay tithing or they will not get temple recommends. They are also told that they will avoid being burned during the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. They are told that if they faithfully pay tithing to the LDS Church the windows of heaven will be opened and pour out a blessing upon their heads. They believe that they will be wealthier than those who do not pay tithing.

So basically, LDS people believe that they will personally be wealthier and that God will make them prosperous if they pay their tithing. There are tithing stories in the church about people receiving checks in the mail and being able to pay their bills, just because they paid tithing. Basically, LDS people believe that if they give to the Church, God will give back to them. Unfortunately, many people have financial problems that are made worse by the fact that ten percent of what precious little money they do have is going to donations to the LDS Church, not payment of large bills or savings for houses, educations, or retirement.

Basically, when it comes to money, Mormons have magical thinking. They imagine that paying tithing will make them richer. It does the opposite.

Also, Mormons are told to pay all of their debts. Some people are in debt because the money doesn't stretch during the month to cover everything. So, basically, the people are constantly made to feel guilty for being in a financial position the LDS Church put them in. So, people have to pay tithing and feel guilty for not paying it. And then, they have to feel guilty that they are in debt, in some cases, because they paid tithing.

And then there is this shocking fact: At a certain point, LDS leaders were telling Church members that they needed to settle down and put down roots. They were told to buy a house and not move all of the time. It makes sense for some families to find a good neighborhood, buy a house, and settle down. However, not all church members are wealthy enough to buy a house that is large enough for them and all of their children.

On top of this, everyone is told to get an education. Lots of young people graduate from college with student loan debt.

Here is a classic scenario from BYU:

A nineteen year old girl and a twenty-two year old boy get married in the temple. Neither one of them has finished college. They both get jobs and try to support each other and make it through school. At some point, the girl may stop using birth control. Either that or she never used it in the first place. This fertile young woman is now pregnant. She has the child. This is what the leaders have told her to do. The young man is now trying to support a wife AND child and get through school. The couple may continue to fail to use birth control and have more children. The young man continues to struggle with bringing in enough money and getting his degree. Some young men never get their degree and end up earning less than they could have. All this and the family keeps growing.

The young people could have all sorts of debt. They could have student loan debt, house debt, car debt, debt from medical bills. But they keep going and assume that this is how life is. For some couples, this breaks up the family. The young couple, or young parents cannot survive the financial deprivation. On an emotional level, things have gotten to be too hard.

Some couples divorce. Some couples feel a never-ending misery that life will never get better. What is worse, the LDS Church leaders tell people that life will not get easier. They tell them that they must prepare for the future and become more spiritual. And they must not stop paying tithing. They are also told that happiness comes from marrying and starting a family early. Many people are actually made unhappy by this kind of a life. Parents and children miss out on health care, future educational opportunities, and a chance to feel financially secure more often.

As you can see, guilt for debt is the cherry the LDS leaders put on top of the sundae of shame, anxiety and burden that the leaders give to families in the church.

Are families really forever in the LDS Church? Or are they merely part of the bizarre mythology that LDS leaders use to manipulate the members into feeling guilt and neediness that would make them turn to the LDS Church for answers? Many people feel that the LDS Church does have the answers. They feel it isolates them from the evils of the world. But does it?

I feel that the LDS Church makes its members believe myths and lies about life that make it impossible to be successful and independent. I know one young family that started out in debt and a lack of education, and I know that no one can make it in this world with great success merely by following the teachings of the LDS Church. Debt and regret are too often the real result.

Why do I care about this? I didn't marry young. I didn't marry at all. Well, I got some of my ideas about life from my fellow church members. And it just didn't wash for me. And I began to feel sorry for people that I at first felt must be very righteous. After a while, I began to tell my family members that I thought that people shouldn't be marrying under the age of 25. I saw impossible life situations because it happens rampantly in the LDS Church. I feel that many people in our society are mentally still children. One reason for this is that American society is so complex that we are children for a while. Our culture is the opposite of simple and relaxing. It makes us into idiots while we try to figure out why the world is the way it is. It is not easy to get along in this society. It is something we must learn before we drag others into our learning curves.

Let us have some sense and think for ourselves. Let us see what ideas and organizations make us believe that life can be easily navigated. Let us see that we not become trapped in them.